Sheriff’s race breaks South County long Democratic monopoly on the office at the end of a polite campaign

Retired undersheriff Adam Shepherd’s smashing victory in the race to replace retiring Sheriff John Armer revealed the depth of north-south differences among Gila County voters.
Running as a Republican, Shepherd wracked up such big margins in north-county precincts that he handily defeated former deputy Darrell Stubbs, who won most of the precincts in the south and Tonto Basin.
Both candidates campaigned aggressively in both the north and south, but Shepherd came out on top, capturing 3,671 votes, 60 percent of those from Payson/Star Valley residents. Stubbs got 2,107 votes, only 42 percent of those from Payson.